Weight Loss Update and General Feelings On Life

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Today was my weigh in at Weight Watchers.  I lost another 0.4 and am now at a total of 40.2.  I'm at my lowest weight in about 3 months and I'm so excited that I'm back on track after a few months of struggling.  I'm really proud of my weight loss journey so far.  I've been on Weight Watchers for over a year and have managed to keep well over 30 pounds off for 8 months.  There have been good times and bad times and REALLY bad times but through it all, I've managed to keep my focus and get back on track very quickly.  For those of you that might read this that haven't ever had a problem with being overweight and struggle with food, you truly cannot imagine how hard it can be sometimes.  Those of us that struggle with weight aren't like other addicts.  We HAVE to still eat food, the thing we have problems with.  Other types of addicts can go the rest of their lives without drinking alcohol or taking drugs so they can totally avoid their addictions but those of us with food addictions, we don't have that option.  Now, I'm not making excuses for my behavior.  I'm just saying that it's not as easy as some people think.  It's not like we can totally quit with our food intake.  We have to eat. 

Then there are the emotional issues that trigger an emotional eater's binges.  I know for me, I think the main triggers are stress and boredom.  Fortunately, I'm more aware of those and so I am learning to take steps to keep those things in control.  However, I think that part of my problem is that many times in my life when I was thinner, I had relationships in my life that ended up hurting me greatly.  I think part of my holding on to weight is a way for me to keep men away.  After all, most men don't want to be with a fat girl.  So, I'm trying to work through those issues and am even considering getting some counseling to help work through those issues.  I don't want emotional baggage to keep me from being able to lose weight and become more healthy.  So, if you are a praying person, please say some prayers that I can work out these issues so that they are no longer strongholds in my life.  I am certain, without a shadow of a doubt, that God can deliver me from my demons (not literal demons but you hopefully know what I mean) so that I can move on with my life in a more healthy life, both mentally and physically.  Fortunately there's a great song out right now by the Contemporary Christian singer Mandisa (and a former American Idol contestant) and here's the link to the video on Youtube:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xYvBTd58xw.  It has really helped me to keep focus and know in whom I place my trust. :-)

On to other topics, this week was a rather controversal week in politics.  President Obama gave a speech to school children and then addressed Congress and the public as a whole about health care.  Regardless if your political leanings, the address to school children was a very good one.  He had some great points to make and hopefully some kids truly heard what he said and want to work on their goals and attitudes regarding education.  At this point I'm trying to figure out what was so offensive in his speech to kids that made parents think they should prevent their kids from hearing it.  It's just crazy and honestly, I don't even like the President or most of his political beliefs but I do think what he said was a good message.  And it wasn't political in nature so it wasn't offensive or inappropriate.
 
However, the whole health care issue is a totally different topic all together.  As someone that is currently uninsured, I think that the biggest areas where our health care system need work are topics such as how crazy the litigation against doctors has become.  I'm not saying that if doctors do wrong things in treatment (horribly wrong like leaving medical equipment inside a person during surgery, cut off the wrong limb, etc.) they should be held accountable but people are suing for things the doctors have no control over and cannot predict.  It's ridiculous to think of all the lawsuits people have won in this area and it's disgusting to know that there are some areas of the country (some in Georgia even) where there are no ob/gyns to be found for 60 or so miles around due to the high costs of medical malpractice insurance.  It's terrible that people that want to help sick people can't afford to do their jobs without fear of being sued.  Another area of concern for me is that there are tons of uninsured people that are being treated (including a multitude of illegal immigrants) that never pay for their care.  This means that those that have coverage are being charged more than they should for care so that doctors can recoup at least some of the money that they aren't getting from the uninsured that don't pay.  I know when I was pregnant with Andrew and had really good insurance, they gave me an ultrasound almost every time I went to the doctor since I was going to be over 35 when I had him.  I was considered "high risk" and so they could get away with all the ultrasounds even though I really didn't need them.  I think if medical malpractice costs would go down then fees for services would go down as well.  Andrew went to see a dermatologist and we were in her office for about 20 minutes.  She looked at his problem, treated it with some stuff that smelled a lot like Compound W and then charged us around $300 for the treatment and visit!  That's INSANE.  No wonder people can't afford healthcare. 

Given the status of other governmental run programs (US Postal Service, Medicare, etc.) I'm certain that the health care industry doesn't need the government to run it into the ground too.  It's not a good idea.  Whether Obama and those that back him want to admit it or not, their health care plan is going to cost MONEY.  We cannot expect the government to run a program and not expect us to pay for it.  It just cannot happen without funds to support it.

I'm not saying I have all the answers but at this point I don't think anyone does.  Canada and other countries that have governmental run medical programs have horrible systems.  Nationalized health care is NOT the answer.  I'm very worried that the plan Obama has is going to be rushed through and people aren't thinking through the long term implications.  Yes, we do need the medical system to be overhauled but we don't need it overhauled into a bigger mess and even more poorly run system than it already is. We cannot afford to rush this one!!!

Well, I've rambled enough about political things and want to stop now.  I hope my thoughts are somewhat understandable.